Tag: Jake Shields

Rousimar Palhares turned in an equally impressive and despicable performance in submitting Jake Shields at WSOF 22 last weekend, defending his welterweight title for the second time in the process. But keeping in line with what we’ve come to expect from the Brazilian, the fight was not without its controversies – Palhares not only gouged Shields’ eyes while mounted in the second round (the damage of which you can see above), but held onto the fight-ending kimura long after referee Steve Mazzagatti had intervened.

With it being revealed earlier today that Shields has suffered significant damage to the shoulder Palhares cranked, “Toquinho” has once again found himself in the hot seat following a victory. WSOF VP Ali Abdel-Aziz threatened to strip Palhares of his title upon reviewing the fight, and on today’s The MMA Hour, WSOF President Ray Sefo followed suit, doing just that and suspending Palhares indefinitely following the NSAC’s investigation of the fight.

At WSOF 22 last weekend, Palhares once again proved that he is an asshole, repeatedly eye-gouging Jake Shields before, and you’re never going to believe this, holding onto the fight-ending kimura for long after the referee had intervened and even longer after his opponent had tapped. This led to a somewhat dramatic exchange at the end of the fight, in which Shields punched Palhares after the bell while his corner had to be restrained from gang-stomping Palhares a new asshole.

In fact, the only person who you could argue was a bigger asshole than Palhares that night was referee Steve Mazzagatti — although he fell more into the “incompetent asshole” sub-category of assholes to Palhares’ “vengeful asshole.” Not only did Mazzagatti fail to dock Palhares points for his repeated, blatant eye gouges, but he made nothing of the fact that a man with a history of holding submissions to long, well, held yet another submission too long.

Thankfully, it looks like the WSOF has finally had enough of Rousimar Palhares’ assholishness. Head after the jump for the details.

The meeting was not without it’s fair share of actual, noteworthy highlights, however, so let’s get to them…

- If you recall, Jake Shields fought Ed Herman in a middleweight contest at UFC 150 back in 2012, emerging victorious via unanimous decision. Shortly thereafter, it was announced that Shields had tested positive for a banned substance, resulting in a $5,675 fine and his win being overturned. What Shields tested positive for exactly remained a mystery until yesterday’s meeting, when in the process of applying for a fight license for his upcoming WSOF 17 main event fight with Brian Foster, Shields admitted to using diuretics, not Mary Jane as we had suspected, prior to UFC 150. (via MMAFighting):

Shields said he was given the diuretics in 2012 by someone he knew from fighting, but not a fellow fighter. He said it was someone he didn’t know very well and called it a “mistake.”

“I learn from my mistakes,” Shields said. “I’d like to think that, at least. I’m not one to go through what I went through before.”

“I didn’t know it was banned, but it was my fault,” he said. “It was my responsibility.”

WSOF 14: “Shields vs. Ford” came and went last night from Edmonton’s Expo Centre in Alberta, Canada, with the majority of the focus on a former UFC and Strikeforce combatant looking to regain his flair.

It’s been quite a while since we first penned our list of the 7 Biggest UFC Busts of All Time, and a lot has changed in the time since. While some of our choices are even more relevant now than they were when the list was originally published in July of 2009, most of them seem either inaccurate or simply out of date in light of current circumstances. Knowing what we know now, we’ve decided to update our list to align with today’s MMA landscape. Enjoy.

Robert Drysdale had already achieved the distinction of being one of the most credentialed Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu competitors and sought-after coaches in all of MMA when he signed with the UFC last year. He had also picked up six straight first round submissions in professional competition, and was primed to make some huge waves in the UFC’s light heavyweight division.

You’d think the UFC would have shitcanned Drysdale right then and there, but The Baldfather is nothing if not a softie for guys with a great ground game (lol!). Drysdale was given another shot at the TUF 19 Finale in July, and to his credit, he actually managed to show up and submit Keith Berish in just over 2 minutes. The post-fight drug test, however, would reveal that Drysdale was once again competing with an unnatural level of testosterone flowing through his veins. But hey, at least his T/E ratio was only 12:1 this time!

One fight. Two failed drug tests. And to our knowledge, Drysdale is still employed by the UFC. Let’s hope he can get his sh*t together long enough to pick up one legitimate win before all is said and done.

There’s a moment early on in Fight Life in which Jake Shields laments (or comes as close to it as he can while retaining his trademark roboticness) the negative effects his career has had on his personal life.

“Everyone’s always like, ‘What are your hobbies?’ and unfortunately, I don’t really have any hobbies because MMA is my hobby, my job, my career. My whole life revolves around it at this point, you know?”

It’s a statement that both serves as the mission statement of the aptly named Fight Life and one that would perhaps support the idea that MMA fighters are not the most intriguing subjects around which to base a documentary. Fighters fight for their families, or to overcome demons from their past, or simply because it’s all they know. While these may be considered fresh revelations to the most casual of MMA fans, it’s nothing that a seasoned fan of the sport hasn’t been treated to a zillion times over in the lead-up to a UFC event or boxing match. As a result, Fight Life winds up feeling less like an intimate look into the personal lives of guys like Shields and Beerbohm and more like an 80-minute Countdown episode.

Chronicling the lives of Jake Shields and Lyle Beerbohm (among others) in the lead-up to their 2009 fights with Robbie Lawler and Duane Ludwig, respectively, the documentary from James Z. Feng is an equally inspiring and underwhelming look at the daily struggles and triumphs of the professional mixed martial artist. Part of the blame for the film’s shortcomings can be placed on its subjects — or at least Shields, who has never been a charismatic individual despite his accomplishments. But really, the biggest issue facing the film is its outdated perspective. MMA has undergone several huge changes in the time between when Fight Life was shot and its release, and neither Shields nor Beerbohm have exactly become the dominant forces that the documentary attempts to set them up as.

That’s not to say that Fight Life is absent of any compelling moments, however…

Michael Bisping has been booked to fight Cung Le on August 23rd, in the main event of a Fight Night card that takes place at the Cotai Arena in Macau. This booking was announced at the UFC 173 post-fight presser.

Le won his last match with a sudden, dramatic KO victory over Rich Franklin. Despite such a win, the 42-year-old isn’t exactly a threat to Bisping, who’s coming off a disappointing decision loss to Tim Kennedy. Looks like the UFC wants its British meal ticket back in the win column as soon as possible.

Get the details on the co-main event, and where the fight card will air after the jump.

“I am very excited to be fighting for the World Series of Fighting. They have one of if not the best welterweight divisions in the world* and I look forward to fighting great fighters like Jon Fitch, Rousimar Palhares, Josh Burkman, Gerald Harris and more,” Shields said in a statement to Bleacher Report. “I also believe I will now be in an environment where fighters are embraced which will allow my performance at my very best! My first fight for WSOF will be soon so stay tuned. My thanks to the MMA community and fans for all the love and support.”

Between the guys that Shields listed, and other UFC castoffs like Yushin Okami and Melvin Guillard, WSOF isn’t just taking the UFC’s leftovers — they’re constructing a bizarre alternate reality in which we’ve all warped back to the year 2007 or something. WSOF should rename itself “UFC Classic” and see if they can draw Matt Hughes out of retirement. The crazy part is, people are legitimately excited about this. Here’s one representative tweet we got after the news broke: